Sharks have today off, but an early look-ahead to Dallas and more surgery today for Malhotra

But, hey, there’s always the need for fresh fodder here and I did talk a little bit yesterday with Ryane Clowe about Thursday night’s game against the Dallas Stars, so let the build-up begin.

Even setting aside the results — a 6-3 victory for San Jose on March 15 — the last meeting between the teams seem to leave plenty of unfinished business. In case you’ve forgotten, this was the game that Jamie Langenbrunner bounced Niclas Wallin’s head off the glass (What? No penalty?), that Douglas Murray flattened Loui Eriksson (Clean hit, of course there was no penalty) and Dany Heatley earned a two-game suspension for elbowing Steve Ott.

(Above parenthetical asides, of course, reflect the San Jose perception of things; Dallas probably looked at them differently)

Ott had a lot to say afterward, all of which only adds to the nastiness between the teams that goes back to the days of Bryan Marchment’s playoff hit on Joe Nieuwendyk, if not earlier.

Here’s the conversation with Clowe:

Do you expect a lot of carryover from the last Dallas game?

“I expect the same as when we always play dallas, a physical game, the usual. I don’t think in their situation they’re going to try for retailiation . . . . They’re out of the playoffs right now so it’s not the right time.

“I remember a couple years ago before they playoffs. They were out and we were in and we had a big brawl at the end of the year. It was physical and maybe a couple of cheap shots here and there, but I don’t think anything intentional.”

What about what Steve Ott had to say afterward, about Doug Murray’s hit on Loui Eriksson, for example?

“I’m sure he’s not going to try to go up and do anything with Dougie. I play with Heater so I’ll probably go talk to him (Ott) and let him know. I think he’ll probably run around and be a rat like he always is.

But isn’t Ott just doing his job when he gets Dany Heatley to take a penalty like that late in the game?

“Yeah. Even in that situation, I don’t think it was a retaliation penalty by Heater. It was just one of those things. Give him (Ott) credit. He can get under your skin because he talks so much. You don’t want to talk back to him. He’s just always in your ear.

“But give credits to the refs. They talk to him a lot during the games and they know his antics a little bit. They’re on top of him.”

The Sharks have a chance to do some damage to Dallas’s playoff hopes in addition to getting the two points for themselves. Sort of like the Calgary game, is that part of the motivation?

“Yeah, for sure. I don’t know their schedule. They could jump into the playoffs. I think they’re in one of those situations where they have to try and win every game now and that’s good motivation for us.

“And then we’ve also got the fact Detroit’s right there with us. There’s still a lot on the line.”

*****I know there’s a lot of interest and well-wishes out there for Manny Malhotra, who is undergoing eye surgery today.

I did leave a message on his cell phone, letting him know that a lot of fans in San Jose are hoping today’s procedure is successful and he’s back on the ice next season. But if you want to do more than that, there’s a Canucks fan web site that has a thread going for that purpose. Here’s the URL:

David Pollak

David Pollak has been following the NHL forever and at the Mercury News as an editor or reporter since 1987. For almost a decade he wrote about the Sharks as the paper's Fan in the Stands before joining the sports department in 2001. He became the Sharks beat writer before the 2007-08 season and began this blog at that time. You can also follow him on Twitter at @PollakOnSharks.